A tough corner that can play in both press and off coverage. Does his best work when he can keep things in front of him. Shows some ability to jump routes, breaking on the quick slant. Shows ball skills to turn and locate the deep pass on the fade pattern. Has good closing burst as a run defender, able to cut the legs of the bigger ballcarrier in the open field. Does a nice job coming upfield to defend the edge. Shows ability to beat the block of the wide receiver on the outside when defending the screen or reverse. Shows some ability as a blitzer off the corner. Also works on kickoffs and punts.

CONS:

Lacks size and can struggle to match up with size. Doesn't have good speed, and struggles to defend the deep pass. Doesn't have the speed and ability to turn and run with receivers. Can draw too many penalties because he is too handsy and creates too much contract because of his athletic limitations. Lacks the hips and burst out of his breaks to really match up in man coverage. Despite being more effective in off coverage, doesn't really show the burst and footwork to drive on the underneath throws. Can take some poor angles from time to time after the catch, and is not the biggest tackler at the point of attack. Lacks explosiveness and speed as a returner, as he's not very sudden. Won't make guys miss and struggles to get up to speed quickly. Also will muff some punts and makes some questionable decisions as a returner leading to mental errors and turnovers.

OVERVIEW:

Brown can be an effective collegiate corner because he plays tough despite not having the ideal size and speed to match up at the next level. He is most effective in off coverage when he can keep things in front of him because of his athletic limitations. He probably fits best in a Tampa-2 scheme that will play a lot of zone, and thus de-emphasize his limitations to project to man coverage at the next level. He was part of the UNC scandal from a year ago, which forced him to sit out the entire year under suspension. He accepted $87 worth of benefits from an agent. And he was suspended for the season opener this past year in relation to that as well.

- suspended 1 game in 2011- missed 3 games due to a sprained ankle in 2008

NFL FORECAST:

Brown can compete at the next level, but will be hard-pressed to make most NFL rosters. Defensively, he really only has a significant amount of upside to project to a Tampa-2/Cover-2 scheme. He doesn't have the elite ball skills that you really like in zone, but he has good enough ball skills. And while he's not the best run defender, he's better than most guys his size to think he can be a solid zone corner there as well. But even in such a scheme, you're probably only really seeing him as a No. 4 guy. He'll just be exposed too often if he was to get extended minutes on defense. The bottom line is that while he'll give you effort, he just won't be able to match up with most of the receivers he would face. So really his value to any team is as a special teams player. He's not a particularly good return guy, but if you needed a guy to fill in an emergency, he could be an effective stopgap. Some teams might tinker with moving him to safety. With his thick build, lack of speed, and comfort in run support, he probably projects better there in most schemes. But he'll still be limited because he doesn't have the sort of range or ball skills to really think he can be more than a body there. Bulk him up and he might be a functional guy, but again his value will likely depend on his special teams abilities. Even if Brown is able to show enough to make an NFL roster, he lacks the upside to think he sticks for more than a year or two unless he shows himself to be a rock-solid special teams player. More than likely, he'll struggle to make most team's practice squads, and it's hard-pressed to see him in the league three or more years from now. It's not that he can't play in the NFL, it's just that he's not going to really do anything in the NFL to merit keeping him around for more than a year or so. So more than likely, the best case scenario is going to a Cover-2 scheme, earning a role as a backup and special teams player and being able to carve out a 3 or 4-year career doing that.

ATL FORECAST:

The Falcons might be better off moving him to safety in order to try and maximize his defensive potential. Because it's a fairly new position to him, one wouldn't expect him to do much in his first camp besides push for a practice squad spot. With a year or two's development and adding some muscle, he might be competent enough to think he could earn a spot as a backup free safety and special teams player. But his upside is still limited there, and probably the best you're hoping for is a Jamaal Fudge-like player that is good enough to make a roster and play special teams,. But the minute you ask him to play extended minutes, you're going to be looking for a replacement pretty soon because you've seen how limited he is.

VALUE:

Brown isn't worth drafting, but a Tampa-2 team might bring him to camp and see what he has. He could be a project at safety for another team, but there's no real reason why you should become the first in line in the undrafted market to try and make that conversion.

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